The embodiments of this disclosure relate to an apparatus for monitoring the lining thickness of a brake lining in a friction brake on a vehicle, wherein the brake lining interacts with a friction partner such as a brake disk.
Such an apparatus is described by way of example in DE 100 29 238 A1. In this document, the wear state of the brake is sensed either by using an electrically conductive wiper contact integrated in a brake lining or alternatively by fitting a wear sensor having internal wiper contacts separately in or on the brake lining. If the amount of wear on the brake lining is critical or if the wear sensor is exposed, an electrically conductive contact point comes into contact with the brake disk, for example, which brings about an electrical short, or an electrical contact loop is broken, i.e., an externally impressed flow of electric current is broken. However, this requires a supply of power to the wear sensors via the vehicle. In vehicles such as goods wagons, which do not have a dedicated power supply, such an approach is ineffective, however.